Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1887-01-05
The Great Guns of England.

such as that just described. coiled spi-
rally, and welded into solid mass bJ
the hammer. These red hot furnaces
contain a straight bar, at word the
door is slightly raised, and with huge
nippers It's head is seized by loops made
| for the purpose. a steam winch draws
out the glowing mass, and brings 1t to
| a horizontal capstan fixed before the
door. A water hose IS turned upon the
loop, and while It blackens under the
chill a stalwart fellow, welding heavy
sledge. fixes the loop on a nut project
| ing from the capstan wheel. Then the
machine revolves with resistless force,
curling the hot metal round and round
on its drum neatly and smoothly, and
as easily as an experienced girl
would wind ribbon. So the coil is
formed, whether for the breech piece or
the oody of tie gun, or for its jacket.
This again is cooled, and after while
Is refined for welding under the ham
mer.
You ought to see this Woolwich ham
mer. II weighs forty tOaS sheer weight,
and when it drops il falls forty feet on
TO block that rests on spiles, MASSIVE
masonry and enormous quantities of
iron. Between two great SHIFTS this
hammer is suspended, SOLID block,
which, driven from above by steam,
aud gathering impetus as it falls,
strikes with force of many hundred
tons. \ veteran workman has charge
OF this massive hammer. He starts and
drops 1t by a touch of his thumb and
finger. l saw an open face watch laid
down on the block; then he dropped the
hammer, and he stopped it just in time
TO break the crystal--and nothing more.
They call this last operation of the fur
mace the ''great heat, and about every
monarch there is in Europe has seen it,
Just rs L did. While | am wondering
what they thought about it, the furnace
to he emptied is faring with tmpa-.
tience. Through the inteTstices of its
great door blue, red and purple flames
are laaping out. A huge crane swings
round pair OF pincers, at that end of.
which dozen Britoas cluster. The
door rises little, the white light blinds
us, and, although L am at least twenty
yards away, the heat burns my face un-.
comfortably. Water is thrown into
the awful gap, and then the men per-
ceive their prey. The huge arms part |
and firmly close. the door rises to its |
fullest extent, 4 clash of the crane |
gear, a shout from the men and out it |
comes, easily and softly, monstrous |
coil. The crane swings about and pla |
ces II on end upon the anvil. Then |
the hammer falls, shaking the solid |
floor beneath us, crushing the red-hot |
mass inches down at a blow, welding |
It's coils together so that they can never |
part. But the inside hollow has been |
knocked out of shape by this process, |
SO, when the tube has been reduced to |
its proper length, solid mandril is |
deftly slipped betYixt the hammer and |
the iron. For two or three blows the
contracted coil attempts resistance, but |
1t gives way, and the mandril slips to |
its base, as into butter. Then the |
great pincers are used again, and it !
drops the mass on Its side, when again
1t is battered and struck all rou0d. |
The irregularities caused by this ham, |
mering are afterward removed by the |
plane, as have already mentioned, aud
then the gun is made by other machi-
merry.
Cost of Long-Distance Teiephoning.
According to Nature, the question OF
telephony against teiegraphy has been
recently discussed by well known |
German electrician, DIR. Wietlisbach |
The chief hindrance TO the use or the |
telephone for long distance is, he points
out, of a financial, no. OF technical
nature, A telephone line 1000 kilo-
meters l,ng (about 1.243 miles), costs
considerably over 100000 marks,
(S250, ,000). 1t is still possible to speak
very well this distance, but even sup
posing the line were in constant use day |
and night, the receipts must be marks
(Say shillingsj minute to make it pay.
In telephone work, however, the line is
in use only few hours daily, hence
short conversation would cost at least |
30 marks f2 10s.) That is, of course, |
too dear for ordinary traffic. The tele-
graph works with almost the same I
speed, more than ten times more
cheaply. Thus the question as TO |
rivalry between telephone and telegraph |
finds its settlement. The telephone up
to about 500 kilometeIs distance (say |
ii0 milesl, will more and more disp.ace
The telegraph, and And an extension
which the telegraph would never reach.
But for greater distances the telegraph |
must keep the upper hand. Thus tele-
phone and telegraph are really no; !,
rivals. but fitted to supplement each
other.